Voters support growth control in Encinitas

Unofficial election results give Proposition A initiative a victory

ENCINITAS  A citizens’ group initiative that aims to control growth in Encinitas won appears to have won victory at the polls.

With all precincts counted, the “Right to Vote” Initiative, called Proposition A on the ballot, was passing with a 51.52 percent “yes” vote, unofficial election results released late Tuesday night showed. An undetermined amount of provisional ballots must still be counted before the election can be certified, but it seems unlikely those votes would change the outcome.

“We believe the people have spoken,” said Bruce Ehlers, publicist for the pro-proposition group the Encinitas Project.

Noting that initiative opponents vastly outspent proponents, Ehlers added that the initiative’s success at the polls should “make people realize you can’t buy elections in Encinitas.”

Christy Guerin, who coordinated the two opponents’ groups, couldn’t be reached for comment late Tuesday night or early Wednesday.

Early in the evening Tuesday when absentee results showed that the initiative was winning by only 110 votes, she said she remained “cautiously optimistic” that things might change when the polling place results were counted.

Guerin said her two groups --- Encinitas Residents, Business & Taxpayers Opposing Prop. A and Homeowners to Preserve Encinitas --- made a big push in the final days before the election to encourage people to come vote at the polls.

Voter turnout had been a worry of proponents and opponents in the months leading up to the election. Proposition A was the only item on the Tuesday’s costly special election ballot, and the voting rates did turn out to be low. In fact, far more people signed the petition to get the item on the ballot last fall than actually voted for Tuesday.

Placed on the ballot by a loose-knit coalition of people opposed to various proposed developments in town, Proposition A was fiercely fought by property owners, business people and developers.

The proposition would require a public vote when a developer proposes changing a property’s zoning or increasing its allowable housing density.

The Encinitas city code already contains a public vote requirement, but there are exemptions. If the City Council determines that a project has a considerable public benefit, the public vote requirement can be waived.

Proposition A eliminates that exemption. It also contains a citywide building height limit of 30 feet and expands the city’s public notification requirements that developers must follow.

Supporters include former county supervisor Pam Slater-Price and former Encinitas mayor Sheila Cameron.

It was opposed by all five City Council members, as well as the San Diego Taxpayers Association and various city business organizations, including the Encinitas Chamber of Commerce and the Downtown Encinitas MainStreet Association.